Refugees

Definitely a 'Bottom Person' here too!

I have to remind myself that ONE LINE of my own Ancestors only came to England in the mid-1800s.

If England hadn't been so welcoming to them, they would have died ............... IN IRELAND.

One male Ancestor arrived first - alone and without his family. He found a temporary roof over his head with people he knew from his own village in Ireland. He slept in ONE room with others in the same situation - they helped him get a Labouring Job. He worked long, hard hours to get enough money to send back for his wife and children to be able to join him.

THEY WOULD HAVE DIED IN THE POTATO FAMINE - if it hadn't been for him managing to settle here and make a life for himself and family ............ and I WOULDN'T BE HERE TODAY!

I take my hat off to you Grannyactivist.

I am a qualified Teacher of English as a Second Language (TESOL) and I trained for the role when the Local Authority cancelled all the classes they used to provide, leaving non-English speakers who are poor with nowhere to learn the language.

In the many years I taught free classes I rarely had a student who wasn’t highly motivated and extremely grateful for the opportunity to learn. My own Afghan (not Afghani, that’s the currency) boys came here aged 14, 15 and 17 almost ten years ago. They learned the language quickly and by the time they left school they were ready for college and took courses including business and book-keeping. They now own, by dint of sheer hard-work and taking on multiple jobs, the cafe where they used to do the washing up.

They saw unspeakable horrors before coming to the UK and I am so glad that they were able to get away and live full, peaceful and productive lives here. I couldn’t be more proud of them.

And to the people who worry about culture clashes; my Muslim boys had no problem moving in with us Christians (they actually asked us if they could come and live with us) and we learned a whole lot about the things we have in common with each other as well as learning to tolerate our differences. (The main one being the younger boy’s obsession with football! ?

Also we are an aging population not producing enough children to sustain ourselves.

Thank Lucca and Jane ?

The people leaving Afghanistan at present probably never thought they would be in this situation.
They have been helping the West.
They are happy to be educated - as has been the case through a lot of Afghanistan's turbulent history.

5,000 is nowhere near enough to take - a drop in the ocean. Only a few months ago we imported 5,000 junior nurses don't forget - just before they closed our border to India.

The current people Are qualified and practising medics, engineers,lawyers, etc.
Interpreters and people in professions where they already speak English.
There are empty military estates dotted around the country, places deserted due to covid, we Can do this.

Also 5,000 people does not equate to 5,000 homes.

And- some have historic, European Ancestry. (German, Polish, yes and English)

Our homeless are not homeless because of immigrants - so many reasons - that's a whole topic on its own.

Airbnb to offer 20000 refugees free accommodation globally. Not specified how long.

Yes, agree reading from the bottom line up to the top. Brilliantly written, but what do we know of numbers that other countries and who they are taking people in, plus topic for the G7 meeting no doubt.

I'm in the "Bottom to Top" bracket! As others have said already, I fear for the ordinary people of Afghanistan. Have written to my MP and sent tweets to relevant government ministers regarding the desperate plight of so many people, especially trained women and girls and also a number of animal rescue groups.
I'm keeping them in my prayers and dreading the day when flights out of Afghanistan are stopped.

I seem to be behind so much news at the moment, I have just read of the 5yr old Afghani refugee who fell to his death from a Sheffield Hotel days after fleeing Afghanistan with his parents, totally heartbreaking for his parents.

WW2, it's already ugly as, effectively (apart from the lucky few) they've been thrown to the wolves.

It seems that Biden is refusing the G7 to extend the deadline.

Afghans will be abandoned. It will become very very ugly.

Chaitriona, psychology would put all our behaviour down to self interest, including 'compassion and working for the common good'. Our empathy seemingly relates to our awareness that we survive and thrive best as a group.

I'm a great believer in 'What goes around comes around', yet I can't help thinking that human nature minimises efforts to help - once our own quality of life is threatened.

Most people would like to think they are a bottom up person. And humans do have the capacity for compassion and working for the common good. But we see that there is also war, violence and inequality in the world. There is inequality in our own society though we are very privileged compared to many parts of the world. At the moment there is Afghanistan and we see young, modern, urban people in a dire situation who could come here and contribute to our society. But what about the uneducated people in the countryside in Afghanistan who may share the culture of the Taliban in many ways. What of people in the Yemen, people in the Horn of Africa, people in the Sahel, people in Bangladesh. There is war and desperation everywhere, The world is burning and drying up. Millions and millions of desperate people on the move. There will be increasing pressure on more privileged areas of the world such as Europe, if we remain viable or relatively viable. What then? Will you still be a bottom up person? Are you really one now? I don’t think there are easy answers.

I have no problem taking our fair share of refugees. My issue is looking at the photos and the news pictures there is an awful lot of young men and a few older men, but we don't see the girls, women, young children and elderly. They are the ones that are in danger. I worry that some of these young men are here to cause trouble and further the terrorists causes.

Some years ago I was a lawyer who came across asylum seekers when the first arrived here, usually in the police station after they had emerged from the back of a lorry. I used to wonder how they would settle and cope here, in such a strange environment compared to the places they had come from. When I met them they tended to be dirty and bedraggled, and disorientated from the experience.
As it was a small city where I worked I came across quite o few of them later once they had indeed settled in. Some were doctors or had degrees that turned out to be transferable and useful. I never met one who regretted coming here or who was not making a contribution. I'm sure that those we take in this time will also benefit our society immensely.

this is a very informative thread over on our junior wing ! MN:
www.mumsnet.com/Talk/AMA/4326405-I-have-hosted-many-Afghan-refugees-in-my-spare-room-and-will-continue-to-offer-it-AMA?msgid=110148583

pinkquartz

When I lived in Derby the women were not allowed to go out of their homes alone and certainly not allowed to learn English.
They live here almost as prisoners.

But hopefully their daughters will be able to go out and have a life.

When I lived in Derby the women were not allowed to go out of their homes alone and certainly not allowed to learn English.
They live here almost as prisoners.

Giving up a spare room in your house to a refugee. I thought it would be easy.
My experience; get advice from someone about how it affects your house insurance.
Be relaxed about water and fuel bills. People from hit countries find even our summers chilly enough to need the heating on.
Find out what help is available for them and how you can help them to access it.
Some have nothing, neither sufficient clothing, nor money e.g. for bus fares or for buying food, especially the sort of food they are used to. (You may enjoy a whole new repertoire of unfamiliar dishes or you may just learn to cope with your house smelling of different foods).
If you have only room for one refugee, be prepared for them to ask you to house ‘just one extra’. It may be a friend or family member or just someone they met as a refugee. It’s hard to say no, but the number can grow.
Anyone else got anything that will help with doing this?

Whitewavemark2

The Taliban have stopped afghans from leaving the country???

I believe that the head of the Taliban has accused the U.K. and US of taking Afghani Doctors, Teachers, Engineers etc which will prevent the Country from being able to move forward

They want to prevent the brightest from leaving in order to be able to keep hospitals, schools open and rebuild.

For the first time I can see the Talibans point, if only they could be trusted not to go on a torture and beheading rampage, along with their barbaric treatment of and attitude towards women.

I’m really annoyed now. What do you mean by virtue signalling Nanna8 ??? Please explain.

I have applied to volunteer at an immigration centre. My friend already does it and asked if I would too. I have experience supporting families in crisis anyway. Just because people don't post what they do, doesn't mean they aren't doing anything.

ALANaV, i'm also glad you don't have to solve this 'problem'.
by the way, batches refer to manufactured items on a production line, to identify the date, time, place of production.
human people are not produced in this manner.

nanna8

Well do you do anything about the situation other than virtue signalling ? Words are cheap.

To whom is this addressed ?
Are you implying that you cannot help or care unless you take in a refugee family ?
I am Donating to the local collection point asking for items
I would cheerfully help with teaching English.

Maybe the rules have changed in France, re speaking French for school age children. My 3 were 6 years old and down when we came here and lived in deepest rural France where the village schools were being shut down because of lack of pupils.
They welcomed my lot open armed , even the baby was snatched into Maternelle (she was 2 though) the influx of 3
saved the day for them and the schools are now thriving as
the rural population has increased , slightly.